The Seeley's Visit

Dane and Lorena graced us with an 11-Day trip to sunny Utah from even sunnier Arizona! It was their va-cation and our stay-cation (since we spent as much money...minus the small fortune in gas... as they did having fun and eating out!) Some of the highlights of the trip included:

THE DINOSAUR PARK!

LAGOON!(by the way, Hannah & Brookie's cars stayed in that exact spot
for the entire duration of the "ride"!)Hannah kept going on this ultra-lame ride until she could get the all-important elephant-with-the-PINK-collar. Girls.

After roasting in line for 30 minutes...we finally cooled off on Rattlesnake Rapids!

The RIO GRANDE CAFE (mmm...Mexican.)

...and the GATEWAY!

THIS IS THE PLACE HERITAGE PARK

(The kids were very concerned about the goat biting off Rachel's toes -
don't worry, they're still attached!)

I got to visit my great-great-grandfather John Fairbanks' ancestral home!


The kids' got pony rides...

and ice cream, so there was a little something for everyone!

We enjoyed good quality SISTER-IN-LAW TIME...
...GIRL-COUSIN-IN-MATCHING-JAMMIES TIME...

...and MALE-BONDING TIME!

What more could you ask for?
Thanks Dane, Lorena, Andrew, Cassandra, Elena and Brooke for the great times! We miss you already...come again soon!

A Travel "How-To"

How to Survive a Week-Long Vacation to Spokane with 5 Kids under Age 10 and No Husband within a 700 Mile Radius

1. Take along your wonderful, amazing sister-in-law Dorrie and niece Bekah who will help out a ton with the driving AND the kids (they even brought along numbered goodie bags to be opened at marked intervals during the 10-hour journey).
2. Make sure you are driving a car with a DVD player, and make sure the volume is up very high so you can't hear any whining or tattle-telling. Sunglasses and tiaras are optional.
3. Make sure there are plenty of first-cousins-once-removed close to the same ages as your kids so they can be thoroughly entertained by each other throughout the entire trip (except on the few occasions when they fight as first-cousins-once-removed sometimes do).
4. Try and match your kids' outfits in public places so they are easier to spot (...plus it's just so dang cute!)
5. Try and throw in a birthday for your middle child so that you have the perfect excuse to not have a "friends" party when you get home...and don't call it a "first-cousins-once-removed" party - that sounds kinda lame.
6. Give yourself a pat on the pack for fitting in any amount of one-on-one time with any of your 5 children under the age of 10.
7. Don't be afraid to ask total strangers to take group photographs so that everyone can be in the picture.8. On the hot days, keep the complaining down to a minimum by including lots of WATER in your activities. Olympic-sized swimming pools are definitely helpful...

...as are gigantic splash fountains!

8. Try and be more understanding when your three-year-old prefers this carousel (NOT free):

to this one (free):

and bring extra quarters to humor the little squirt!

9. Surround yourself with the beauty of nature, meditate, and maybe you'll actually be able to hear yourself think!

10. Count heads...a LOT. 1...2...3...4...5...yep, they're all there!11. Enjoy the companionship and long conversations with wonderful women that you count as some of your dearest friends!
12. Pawn your baby off on any of those fine women, because you don't have a husband around to do that to!
13. Only go to a restaurant with 9 children if you're ordering dessert...they'll be too busy shoveling ice cream in their mouths to misbehave and you'll get out of there a lot quicker. Mmmm...ice cream!

Thanks for the great time, Jessica, Ryan & Co. Come see us anytime!

Top 10 Things to Blog About Over the Past 2 Weeks
(In no Particular Order)

10. Hannah gave herself a haircut.Everyone else's kids give themselves haircuts at one time or another but I thought my kids and I had an understanding...apparently not. I was tidying up in the bathroom last weekend when I discovered a drawer-ful of hair and a pair of Skissors lying menacingly on the counter. I screamed because a giant wad of hair was the last thing I expected to see next to the toothpaste. I knew from the length and color of the hair that it was Hannah's and that she had to have done a bang-up job. I ran into her room where she was pretending to be asleep and, sure enough! She had given herself a rather modern, asymmetrical cut and some short bangs that we have been growing out for over a year. Luckily, we were able to get a pretty cute A-line bob out of it, courtesy of Supercuts. Because of Hannah's distaste for admission of any wrongdoing, she will proudly announce to everyone that she likes her hair much better now. Stinker.

9. My Children's Place order arrived and my boys cried because I made them wear their new sweater vests to church.To add insult to injury I threatened to take away video games for a whole week if they didn't smile for the camera...don't they look genuine? I do so love a smart sweater vest, even if it is 95 degrees outside and my children want to kill me.

8. We had our first and hopefully last bunny fatalityOn that fateful day, Hannah came running into the house exclaiming happily "Mom, Oreo is okay, mom...she's Oooo-Kaaaay!" which, of course, alerted me to the fact that Oreo was probably NOT okay. Tyler read my mind and ran out to the bunny cage where he discovered Oreo's lifeless body. He brought her into the house, sobbing uncontrollably and much drama ensued...tears, accusations, more tears. We are still unclear about Oreo's cause of death and getting the solid truth out of a three year-old is next to impossible as her story changes with each retelling. Adam asked me later on that day if Hannah could still go to heaven for hurting Oreo. I took that golden opportunity to teach my children a little gospel lesson about love and forgiveness...and accidents. We will miss you, Oreo!

7. We discovered Rachel is definitely a water baby.Okay, so this is really a shameless attempt to show off how adorable my baby is in her stars & stripes swimsuit. She does love the water!

6. The boys discovered that sleeping on the trampoline is fun!...However, I'm still a little freaked out and often find myself sleeping on the couch with the windows open, listening for abductors...not so fun.

5. My sister Suzanne and I became "carnies".We debuted our Pretty Petal merchandise at the Centerville 4th of July carnival. We did very well and had a blast! Our website is now up and running, too! (www.theprettypetal.com)

4. We still managed to enjoy some family time together watching fireworks and chillin' out.Cheese! (Apparently Adam has the "Say Cheese Disease"...poor kid!)

3. Cade showed off his mad snow-cone making skills to the delight of all who partook.You have a gift Cade, don't ever forget it!

2. Hannah and her cousin, Carly were inexplicably overcome with affection towards one another.

I snapped the picture upon realizing that they were ACTUALLY hugging and not hurting...maybe there is hope for those two after all!

1. I headed up to Spokane, Washington with the kids to visit Cade's niece, Jessica, and her family. We had so much fun! Details and photo documentation are forthcoming...just as soon as I finish unpacking!

Utah summers...'n stuff

I'm behind on my blogging!!!! I'm going to try combining several potentially interesting posts into one long, boring one to chronicle our summer goings-on thus far. We are LOVING Utah summers again and almost forgot what it was like to not roast to death for 4+ months out of the year (we still miss our friends and family in Arizona...wah.) Perhaps it is the non-triple-digit weather conditions that inspired Adam and Jason to put on their warm Christmas jammies on this particular occasion. They decided to really mix things up and were beaming with excitement when they came downstairs dressed like this...wierdos! All in all, we are having a great summer and they are spent mostly outside, doing things like this...

...and this...

We also get to go swimming every Tuesday with my friend Heather at her in-law's very awesome pool. The VERY BEST part about summers in Utah is, without a doubt, VISITORS!!! My sister, Lisa, and her family came from Arizona. We picnicked at the park with the entire Jenson clan and had a great time with everyone.
Then came my friend Luanne and her kids...also from Arizona. My friend Shawna, who moved to Utah from Arizona last year came too. We spent the day mostly at home, playing with bunnies, jumping on the trampoline, and eating...a lot. We walked the the park, too, with all ELEVEN children. Luckily in Utah you don't get too many strange looks when herding around that many young'ns. Here's Rachel and her "boyfriend", Kaden. (It's okay, Dawn...she's still betrothed to Rigdon. This is just a fling.)
Yesterday our friends Mark and Jill drove in on their way up to Oregon from, of course, Arizona (duh) and spent the night before heading out this morning to finish their trek. We had dinner with them and the Schnepfs last night. It was so much fun. We are so lucky to have such great friends that will come and stay with us. We tried to spoil them rotten so they'll want to stay here again! Mark and Jill have 5 kids, too - 3 boys and 2 girls and they are all very close in age to ours, so needless to say, they had a blast together! Here are Mark & Jill and their cute clan...
I've also been spending a LOT of my time preparing to start up an online baby boutique called The Pretty Petal with my sister Suzanne, featuring very cute flower headbands like this one...
Isn't it adorable??? (The headband is pretty cute, too!) We'll see how this new business venture goes...we really have no idea what we're doing, but we're having fun. Stay tuned...

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, DADDY!

TYLER loves Daddy because..."he likes taking me places and spends time with me."


ADAM loves Daddy because..."he throws me on the couch." ( I promise it's a game, not child abuse!)

JASON loves Daddy because..."he's good to us and he plays basketball with me."

HANNAH loves Daddy because..."he plays games with me and gives me fruit snacks."

RACHEL loves Daddy because...she can charm him into doing anything she wants!


MOMMY loves Daddy because...she can also charm him into doing anything she wants...AND because he is kind, helpful, understanding, dependable, fun, and pretty much the best guy ever!

WE LOVE YOU!

Bunnytown!

We love babies! Since we've already met our quota of human babies here at the Seeley residence...we decided to adopt bunny babies! Here are "Lucky" and "Oreo" - so cute! This is a very big step for our family. The only pets we've ever had in our 13 years of marriage have been goldfish...until now. This is due, in part, to the fact that my dear sweet husband pretty much despises all animals, even very cute and cuddly ones. Cats are definitely out, dogs are out, birds are out, everything is out. The only pets Cade had as a child were rabbits, so when our neighbors showed us their new bunny litter, Cade's cold, cold heart began to melt to the point that we bought into our possession not one, but TWO cute, lovable, furry little bunnies. The kids are crazy about the bunnies and so is half the neighborhood, so I'm really glad they live outside.


Cade even spent a week's worth of spare time and a small fortune making the "Mack-Daddy" of all rabbit hutches for Oreo and Lucky to reside, and the kids helped paint it. Cade claims that the bunnies are sisters, but I know he secretly hopes that one of the "shes" is a "he" so we can enjoy even more bunnies, but he would never admit that! So far I haven't witnessed any incestuous shenanigans, but you know I'll keep you posted...literally.

Potty Humor

Hannah wandered downstairs last night and informed me that she had wet in her underpants "just a little tiny bit" in her dramatic Hannah-style, complete with hand gestures to illustrate such a minute amount. She then reassured me in her most sympathetic voice (complete with head tilt and nod) "It's okay if I go just a little tiny bit [voice higher] in my underwear, right, mom? That's okay...") to which I responded (with markedly less sympathy) "No, Hannah...it's not okay to go in your underwear, not even if it's a little tiny bit. When your body tells you that it's time to use the bathroom, you need to listen and go right away." She stared at me, first inquisitively, then incredulously and exclaimed "Mommy, my bum doesn't know how to talk!!" She couldn't contain a giggle - a brazen acknowledgment of her own mother's ignorance of the human anatomy and its functions (AND because she had just said the word "bum"), then ran off to play. Ya gotta love potty humor...and 3-year-olds. Maybe they are mutually compatible after all!

Last Day of School

Here are the boys on their last day of school! They celebrated after school with an ice cream party at the church...yum. We are looking forward to a long 'n lazy summer!

Tyler was recognized at a school assembly and received a "Cerificate of Outstanding Performance" for scoring in the top ten percent nationwide on the Iowa Tests in the areas of Reading, Math and Social Studies. Congratulations Tyler!!!

Jason has had a great year in Kindergarten with Mrs. Larsen. He's a great student and has been reading everything he can get his hands on these past few months. I love what a self-motivated learner he is! He can hardly wait for first grade!

Potpourri

Since I have been so long in posting, I thought I'd give you some of the highlights of last week. Friday was Jason's Kindergarten program at school. He had a speaking part and everything (..."there's something here that's not quite right!...") which Jason and Hannah have hammered into my memory forever. Grandma Jenson came to watch as well as Grandma and Grandpa Seeley. It was adorable and Jason did a great job. He has loved Kindergarten and will miss his teacher, Mrs. Larsen!
On Friday night, Cade came back from his week of business trips to North & South Carolina and Iowa to a beleaguered wife and 5 excited children! He jumped right in and we got the house and yard in shape just in time for our friends the Cummings and the Taylors to come over for a reunion barbecue on Saturday. They are our long-time friends from BYU. We were all in the same singles ward so there was plenty to laugh about and catch up on! I forgot to take pictures of the incredible fun we had, so you'll have to just take my word for it!

In preparation for our reunion BBQ, Cade retrieved the trampoline from Cade's parents house that belongs to Cade's sister Dorrie, and set it up in our backyard for the kids. Now, we've had some mixed emotions about owning a trampoline due to last year's memorable experience while living with Grandma and Grandpa Seeley:
Yep, Jason broke his leg due to a trampoline mishap at the exact moment I was pushing a baby out of my "tummy" at the hospital. The trampoline did not have a pad or a net and, according to Jason, when he tried to get off the tramp, he got caught in the springs, flipping him forward where he "hanged-ed upside down" until Grandpa could retrieve him. Poor, sweet Jason! Not many kids start their first day of Kindergarten in a full leg cast and a wheelchair. On the up-side, it propelled him to superstar status at school with the sympathy he evoked from ALL grade levels, mostly girls (who can resist those dimples...really!)

So now there's at least a pad on the trampoline for safety's sake, although it didn't do me much good on Tuesday night when I decided to show off my mad front flip skills to the delight of my children. Unfortunately, I was a bit overzealous and sprung myself right off the trampoline, crashing rather ungracefully to the ground! Thankfully, my dignity and pride were the only casualties of the day, although Hannah insists "the wind blowed you off, Mommy!" which sounds a little less lame (...that would have to be quite the wind-storm!) Fortunately, I have NO photo documentation of the "event". Here are the kids having fun:
Last, bot not least, we've been busy car-making, in frantic preparation for the infamous "Pinewood Derby" wherein the self-esteem of all boys from the ages of 8-11 is put to the test...I mean, race! Of course we bought into the hype of the Pinewood Derby...what loving parent wouldn't?? We learned our lesson the hard way at last year's Pinewood Derby wherein we bought the kit, assembled the car, painted it, and off we went...to the slaughter! Tyler's car did...not good. It was obvious the hours and hours of hard work and dedication that were invested in about 90% of the cars (thankfully, there were a couple of other dummies there besides us!) and so despite Tyler's award for "fastest looking car" (ha!) it fell short and we (mostly Cade) went home with our tails between our legs, vowing to do better next year. So this year, with the fragile self-esteem of both Tyler and Adam on the line, we (mostly Cade) worked very hard on the cars, carefully researching and implementing race-winning strategies into a couple-a blocks-a wood! He made sure the boys "helped" in two-minute increments about every 5 hours or so, which Cade carefully documented for all of posterity which I won't bore you with. Maybe I can do a slide-show on my next post so you can feel like you were there!

Tyler won the "Sleekest Car" award and took 3rd place overall!
He left the church on Tuesday night with his self-esteem fully intact.

Adam received the "Blue Coolest" award (???) and although he didn't place in the top 4, his car did quite well. Fortunately he had just enough self-esteem in reserve to emerge virtually unscathed from the Pinewood Derby!

Here are the racers with their top mechanic!

Good job, boys. Until next year!!

David vs. David...Stacy's weighing in!

GOOOOO DAVID!!!
(...Archuleta, that is)

I've been a Cook fan (...David Cook, that is) for quite a while, but I think I just switched teams tonight after "Archie's" amazing performances tonight on American Idol. He simply out-performed his competition and therefore deserves to win...of course that's just my humble opinion. I swear, next Tuesday I'm going to cry myself to sleep due to AI withdrawals (and a couple of other silly "programs" I enjoy that are going bye-bye till the fall). Oh wait...I still have a few minutes left to vote...gotta go!